


Companion to our demons

by kingstonmcbride



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-29
Updated: 2015-01-29
Packaged: 2018-03-09 12:48:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3250283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kingstonmcbride/pseuds/kingstonmcbride
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"A devious smile lit up her face as she shrugged at him, setting the filled water bottle down and reaching into her pocket for a cherry".</p><p>Just a little fluff piece with a smidgen of angst.<br/>Set a few weeks after Grady hospital.<br/>Carol and levity...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Companion to our demons

**Author's Note:**

> 'It will be easy to look in or out  
> upstream or down without a thought  
> and if I shed a tear I won't cage it  
> I won't fear love...'  
> Sarah McLachlan ~ Fumbling Towards Ecstacy

The water in the river reflected the bright morning sunshine, sparkling clean and fresh, a total contrast to the filth and decay of the world that rose up around it. The air was hazy and damp and Carol huffed as her top stuck to her back as she leaned over the water. Daryl looked over at her and raised a brow in question, taking in her red rimmed eyes and the paleness of her skin that spoke of a gruelling night.

“It’s gonna be a hot one”, she answered his wordless question.

He grunted softly and went back to filling the water bottle in his hand, screwing the cap on once it had filled and setting it next to him as he reached for another.

“Y’alright?” He asked.

She smiled back at him sweetly, “I am”. He stared at her. “No, _really_ Daryl, I am”.

“’kay”. He tore his eyes away from her and started to fill the next bottle.

_It had been two weeks since they had lost Beth. Two weeks of heavy silences and hidden tears while they fought to stay alive, everyone pushing aside their own grief to try and pull Maggie through the unbearable pain she was in. They’d been on the road. Hungry, tired and many of them ready to give up, and then they had found temporary respite. A large house, empty aside from a few rats. Behind it a large garden dotted with cherry trees led down to a river. The previous occupants were long gone, and they had decided to stay for as long as they were safe, everyone agreeing that they needed time to breathe, regroup and just rest._

_Daryl had found her that evening sitting on a bed in one of the rooms, staring at a small doll on the bedside table, fat tears rolling down her cheeks, not a sound escaping her. He’d sat down beside her carefully and taken her hand, and then he had listened as she told him the terrible truth about what she had been through, what she had been forced to do. Her words ripped at his heart and he pulled her to him as she shook and sobbed against him, stroking her arms until she quieted and he realised she was asleep against his chest. He’d laid her down on the bed pulling dusty blankets over her, before sitting back on the chair next to the bed and closing his own eyes._

_When he’d woken up, squinting at the sunlight filtering through the windows she was awake. Her eyes were on him, and he wondered how long she’d been staring at him with that odd look on her face, a small smile ghosting over her lips._

_After cold showers – which were pretty close to heaven - and a morning meeting to assign jobs, they walked down to the river to collect water to boil back up at the house. Carol had stockpiled pockets full of cherries on the way down, her face lighting up at the sight of the fruit laden trees. Something had shifted in Daryl’s chest as he watched her pluck them from the branches, her face scrunching up in concentration._

Drawn back to the present by the noise of the river, he looked down at the water and wondered why his thoughts always became so muddled when it came to her. He sighed loudly and continued with his task.

A movement jolted him from his musings followed by the sensation of cold water hitting his face. He jumped back and stared over at his partner incredulously.

“What the fuck?”

A devious smile lit up her face as she shrugged at him, setting the filled water bottle down and reaching into her pocket for a cherry.

“You looked hot”, she said calmly before popping the fruit into her mouth and reaching for another empty bottle.

Grumbling he wiped the water from his face and dipped his bottle back into the river.

He snuck a look at her, freckles popping out in the sunlight, light curls kissing the nape of her neck, her lips pursing as she pushed the cherry stone out of her mouth before spitting it delicately onto the grass. He felt something pushing its way through the suffocating guilt over Beth that sat heavy in his chest, and he swallowed thickly before a familiar sound reached his ears and he found himself once again wet.

“Will you _stop_ ”, he growled, reaching out and grabbing the wrist that was holding on to the offending bottle.

She grinned at him. “Nnnoooope”. She squeezed the bottle again and the water squirted out into his face sending him flying onto his back, pulling her with him.

“Oooof”

“Shit!”

Foreheads collided and they both blinked in surprise, their faces centimetres away from each other. Before Daryl could ask if she was okay he felt soft lips against his own and he grunted in surprise before pressing his lips back against hers, his head swimming with the taste and proximity of her, wondering how the hell they’d gone from filling water bottles to this in about two minutes flat.

Feeling her pull away he opened his eyes, finding himself staring into wide pools of blue as he struggled to get his wits back. Her face was serene, a sweet smile crossing her lips as she cupped his face gently.

“Alright?” she asked softly.

“Ya taste of cherries” he muttered, instantly cursing his brain and mouth for being connected.

She laughed, a light sound that filled the air around him. He wanted to hear that sound over and over. He wanted to be the reason she made that sound for the rest of his life. Feeling her gaze still on him, he realised he still hadn’t answered her.

“I meant…yeah, yes” he breathed, gathering control of himself again, his hand going up to cup her cheek, his thumb stroking her bottom lip as she kissed it gently.

Extracting herself from him, she pushed away, standing and pulling him up with her before reaching up and kissing him once more briefly. Daryl wondered if he looked as dazed as he felt.

Her chatter filtered through his brain slowly as he watched her gathering the bottles. Something about getting back to the house and then hair and scissors…

He watched her as she turned back to him, her face almost shy now, before slipping her hand into his and looking up at him. “You okay?” she asked, her eyes shining at him in the morning sun. He lifted his other hand to her ear, tucking a curl behind it and smiling at her.

His words were gruff, his voice catching. “Mmhm. Both of us gonna be, I reckon”.

She nodded, blinking tear filled eyes, and they turned and started to walk back through the garden towards the house.

She glanced at him slyly. “Don’t worry, I’ll let go of your hand before we get in sight, don’t wanna cramp your style Pookie”.

He snorted and squeezed her hand tighter. “Stop”.

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
